Letting the Cat Out of the Bag

I'm sure many of you have noticed my major neglect of this sweet blog. And several weeks ago I told you all that I promised once I was able to share with you guys, you'd see that it was totally worth it. Well, today is the day that I finally get to share the reason for my absence. I'm excited to introduce my Pure and Noble family to my new baby... Fresh BiB.

The hubs and I have spent the past four months developing and producing Fresh BiB and mercy it has been a lot of work. But so worth it. What is Fresh BiB, you ask? Well, we're a monthly subscription to one-of-a-kind designer bibs. And you thought diapers were the only things you could get delivered monthly! ha ha ha

We're not just a bib though... Our bandana bibs are 100% cotton, reversible, made in the USA, have snap closures and come in a reusable container. Oh, and the fabric design/print is a surprise each month. You never know what you're gonna get! (We think mommies deserve a few fun surprises - mixed in with some high-fives and hugs - each month for all the hard work they do every day.)

I hope you guys will stop by and say "hi"; I'd love to hear your thoughts. I can't even begin to tell you how excited we are and how much fun this has been to just get off the ground. Thank you all for hanging out and not dropping like flies while I've been gone. To show my deepest gratitude, I'd like to offer my Pure and Noble family a 20% discount for the rest of July. Check us out and enter promo code: FRAMILY20. xo

One Year. Already.

That handsome, hairy, dapper dude is my Dad. The world's best dad. Today marks one year since he lost his battle with cancer. I miss him. (Don't hate on my Dorothy Hamill haircut. I know you're jealous.)

He was funny, bold, full of life and adventure. He never met a stranger and he loved the outdoors. I don't know who will teach my boys to fish or how to shoot a rifle, but I know they will never forget him. He left an amazing legacy. 

This Father's Day, go hug your Daddy and squeeze him as tight as you can. And if his head is bald, give it an extra rub just for me. xo

My Baby is SIX?

This moment. Six years ago my oldest became a big brother to the funniest, sweetest, kind hearted boy in the world. Liam has brought so much joy into our lives. He completed our little family and makes us laugh every single day. Oddly enough my dad called it the first time he ever held Liam. He looked into his eyes, looked at me and said, "this one... this one's gonna be funny."

A few weeks later, I had the sleep deprived emotion driven response of,  "I don't know him at all. I only know that he has changed everything and I'm so crazy right now that I can't even love my oldest well right now, much less give him the time he needs with his Momma." The first five and a half weeks of little Liam's life were some of the most challenging I have ever faced. It was a scary dark time for me. One that I am forever grateful to be on the healing and redeemed side of. I didn't like who I was those first five weeks. But once the hormones began to regulate, he started eating well and began sleeping - finally sleeping for more than 20-30 minutes, the love poured in and it hasn't stopped since. 

Liam makes every day better for whomever he spends time with that day. His adventurous spirit and carefree soul is infectious. We would be lost without this our bundle of laughter that turns six today and we celebrate the mighty ways that God has already used this little warrior in our lives. We love you Liam. You are simply amazing and hysterically funny.

Go squeeze your littles. They grow up too fast. xo

Father's Day - A Giveaway

Giveaways aren't something I usually do, but Father's Day is coming up and I figure some of my sweet readers might be too busy wranglin' kiddos, now that school is out, to shop for that perfect gift. No need to worry. I've got ya covered. Think foot coverage - think socks. Fun, well made, conversation starting socks. My talented husband (and world's #1 Dad) has been working with the insanely hilarious guys over at Foot Cardigan. Recently, the hubs and I teamed up to show their subscribers the many ways their socks could be worn. 

Necktie. Mittens. Beer koozies. Yes, the socks are that cool and we are giving 6 lucky followers a chance to win 2 pair each! I know - awesomesauce!

Here are the RULES for our Father's Day Sock Giveaway:

1 - check out Foot Cardigan's site (subscribe if you like - wink wink)

2 - Tell me how you'd wear Foot Cardigan socks in the comment section below.

3 - Be sure to follow me on Instagram and BLAMO! You're entered to win.

Just three simple steps. Pretty easy for a sock-tastic Father's Day gift.

All the socks that are to be given away were used in the shoot only - none have actually been worn. That would be gross. Special shout out to our guys at Foot Cardigan for donating the socks. You guys are the bestest. Giveaway will be closed June 5th. Winners will be announced June 6th so that we can get addresses and socks shipped/delivered before Father's Day on June 15th.

Good luck! xo

Recharge - A Family Getaway

No one needs a reason to get away and recharge. In fact, I think it pretty necessary and long weekends provide the perfect opportunity to do both. So when my sweet friend Allison Vieger of Design from A to V asked us to join her family out at their ranch, we jumped at the chance. What mom doesn't want to give her boys an opportunity to roam wild in the country?

From cows to longhorns, horses to chickens and everything in between, this ranch was legit. Poop smells and all. My boys got to ride on the top of a Polaris (all Safari like), pet horses, toss rocks, explore, look for snakes, swim and play horseshoes. It was boy heaven. A heaven that I was eager for them to embrace. 

Time just sort of stands still when you're in the country and life gets simple. I laid in a hammock for over 45 minutes just listening to the wind rustle through the leaves of the trees and cows moo. It's sad how the sounds of life can drown out the sounds of nature. The little whispers that allow us to be thankful for the ordinary. We're back in the city now... recharged and ready to tackle the remaining weeks of school with our hearts full and grateful for the blessings of family and friends.

How do you recharge? xo

Motherhood

It changed everything. That pink plus sign. My heart stopped and then it started beating quickly and moving it's way up my throat! I was going to be a Mom. No, not a "Mom." I was going to be someone's Mommy. That very moment is when the adventure of my life began.
Not every moment has been a gift, but the ups and downs have changed me for the better. Yes, there were (and still are) moments when I wanted to run for the hills - like the time I sat on a plane for 2.5 hours with a screaming toddler and didn't have the presence of mind to by my fellow travelers a round of drinks. Or when my newborn would sleep for a max of 30 minutes in between feedings for the first five weeks of his life and I thought I might hurt myself or my children. By God's grace, and with the help of community, I got through the really low lows. And for every difficult season there has been a wellspring of joy. The happiness that fills my home and my heart is like no other. From that first introduction followed by sweet baby smells and cuddles to the silly milestones of losing teeth and tying their own shoes... Mommyhood is a celebration of life. Life in it's purist simplest, hardest, rawest form.

I am a Mommy. I wipe bottoms. (Not anymore thank you sweet Jesus.) I wipe tears. I prepare lunches. I don't get much sleep. I am often a pack mule. I get 2-3 hours "off" on a good day. I rarely take vacations. And I LOVE IT. It is the best job in the world. I am so grateful for my little nuggets and the way they grow me. Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms out there. You are one seriously badass breed of people! Much love and mad props. xoxo

Themed Parties - Confetti

Ughh... I've fallen so far behind on this little blog of mine. I promise once we launch our new project, you will see that it was totally worth it! In addition to prepping for our new product launch, I have been planning a few birthday parties for my guys. Uh-huh, all three of them. In my research, I've come across some pretty amazing confetti influenced craft and party ideas. I thought I would share them here just in case you happen to be doing any party planning as well.

 via aunt peaches

1 | 2 | 3

 via you are my fave

1 | 2

1 | 2

You're welcome. Tee hee hee. xo

stingray confetti via flickr

TGIF and Other Mommy Stuff

Maybe it's because Mother's Day, the one day a year allotted to celebrate the very people that make the world go 'round, is just around the corner or because it's Friday and it's been a long week... Whatever the case, I felt an urge to share a few mom-related goodies that I came across this week. Grab your bon-bons and coffee, kick your heels up and soak in about 15 minutes of you time. (I don't think bon-bons are very popular anymore... perhaps you'll be grabbing french macaroons or the really good stuff like Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs stolen from your child's Easter basket.)

If you're a mom that has ever yelled at her littles, read this and take back what is yours.

The dirty mommy word and a dose of realness about it can be found right here.

Supermodel mommies don't "multi-task".  This made me laugh real hard. Enjoy.

It's the weekend baby. Time to enjoy the many uncelebrated gifts that come with that word... sleeping later (if you're lucky), co-parenting for two long and lovely days, lunches with your entire family (on a picnic blanket perhaps), date-nights for some and home dates with couch cuddles for others. Halle-freakin'-lujiah baby, it's the weekend! Get your party pants on because it's about to get real. xo

top image via the glow

Around the House: My Round Top Gift

Sisters do crazy things sometimes. The upside of this? Benefitting from their crazy. Last week, my sister forced me to go to Round Top with her during a crazy busy time for me. (Oh, and I should also mention that I had zero dollars to spend.) She and her hubs just moved and are now redecorating with an industrial/rustic look. Since she had never been to Round Top and I had been all of ONE time, I was now the expert. Bring on the miles and miles of vintage, rust, and story filled goodness.

We left Thursday, shopped all day and were back at it again early Friday morning. My sister got all kinds of amazing things from chairs, rugs and washtubs to an amazing, one of a kind, 8.5 foot farm table with railroad pipings (or something like that) for the base. Because my sister is a giver among givers, she bought me this amazing rug for my kitchen as a "thank you"/birthday gift. Y'all... I die. As if the trip wasn't great enough. Look at these amazing colors.

Come on... how sweet was that? We laughed till we cried, shopped till we dropped and had the best (and only) sister trip ever. I can't wait to do it again. We hope to make it an annual trip; not for the shopping, but for the good times and laughter. We talked the whole car ride down (4 hours) as if we were old friends that hadn't seen each other in years. (And y'all, we talk several times a week.) We needed this trip more than we needed the items that we brought back. It filled my heart and my soul to do something special with my sister that blessed her, and I think, brought us a little closer. That was the best gift of all.

Do you and your siblings take special vacations with one another? xo

Never Say Never.

When dreaming of vacation destinations, places like Hawaii, Colorado and Oregon generally top the list. Places like Bentonville, Arkansas never even cross my mind. So when the hubs suggested we vacation in Bentonville for Spring Break, I thought he was joking. He wasn't.

He was part of an art show in Joplin, MO, of all places, so we knew we needed to be there at least one night. In an effort to make our way there, by way of the glorious open road, he decided on Fort Smith and Bentonville. We packed our bags and let the road take us on a journey. I have never been more pleasantly surprised. We stopped in Paris, Texas to see the Eiffel Tower - underwhelming, sadly. We found a great roadside Rock Shop - yes, that was the name - and it was full of glorious crystals, geodes and other bits of beautiful glory. (And to think I had to pry my boys out of the car to go inside... we stayed there for over 45 minutes if that tells you anything about the measure of awesomeness.) Then it was off to Fort Smith for the night. That's where we found a Trolley/Train museum that blew us away. Old train tracks, access to old cars and graphics that knocked my socks off. It was amazing...

  

And then we walked into this old car... Hello lovely mint green goodness that needs to be on our front door STAT and a gorgeous light that brings tears to the eyes.

The entire collection of train cars and their insides was a design feast for graphics and geomtrics. I was so inspired.

Selfie...

And sadly, from this point of the trip on, I left my camera in the hotel. My goal was to be present and in the moment with my sweet family instead of clicking away with my phone or camera. At times I was successful and others, not so much. I got completely enveloped in the arts that surrounded me and while my littles appreciated bits of it (proud momma moment), their interest is still a bit underdeveloped.

Y'all, I could NOT believe all the art in Arkansas. I haven't seen that much art in 15 years. Pathetic. The good news is that it has rekindled my love and appreciation of it. If you are ever in Arkansas, you must visit the following...

Fort Smith Regional Art Museum - beautiful and free to public. They had a beautiful exhibit on Valentine cards from the 1800s to now that blew me away.

Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art - to say it was breathtaking is an overwhelming understatement. The architecture alone will blow you away; then there's the amazing grounds and trails all about, the incredible art and the kids Experience Art Studio, where my littles stayed for over an hour. Stunning inside and out. I can't wait to go back.

21c Museum Hotel - The museum. The hotel. The Hive. I die. I hope to be able to take my hubs here for our 11 year anniversary! So so so cool.

I always swore that I would "never" go back to Bentonville after having worked with Wal-Mart back in my product development days. Well... never say never. xo